Closure assembly



Aug. 11, 1964 .1. J. GRASS CLOSURE ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 25, 1962 Aug. 11, 1964 J. J. GRASS 3,144,151

CLOSURE ASSEMBLY Filed Jan. 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 a gzm 9 29- 29X 32 a fg Qnzueniyn United States Patent 3,144,151 CLUSURE ASSEMBLY Joseph J. Grass, Lake Bluif, Ill., assignor to Abbott Laboratories, North Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Filed Jan. 25, 1962, Ser. No. 168,601 1 Claim. (Cl. 215-6) This invention relates to a closure assembly for a plural compartment container suitable for storing both liquid and solid ingredient separately, The type of plural compartment container with which the closure assembly of the invention is particularly useful is the type wherein a liquid ingredient is contained in one compartment and a dry ingredient separated from the liquid ingredient is contained in another compartment. The plural compartment container is provided with a piston plug which is slidable in a tubular neck of the container. When the piston plug is moved inwardly of the container, the piston plug is operative to force a center sealing member into the lower compartment so that the liquid ingredient and the dry ingredient come into contact with each other. The piston plug is normally manually actuated so that the center sealing member is dislodged. A ring is provided which has a central hole for receiving the piston plug. A piercing needle connected to a container or the like is then inserted through the piston plug and the solution in the plural compartment container is drawn therefrom.

It is one of the purposes of the invention to provide a closure assembly wherein the inward movement of the enlarged head portion of the piston plug is limited with respect to the ring. More particularly, means are provided on the ring which engage a stop face on the under side of enlarged head portion of the piston plug for limiting the inward movement of the enlarged head portion of the piston plug with respect to the ring. Because the inward movement of the enlarged head portion of the piston plug is thus limited, the user can easily grip the enlarged head portion of the piston plug after it has been moved inwardly. Normally, the user of the closure assembly of the invention will move the piston plug inwardly until the underside of the enlarged head portion come into abutment with the limiting means of the invention. This inward movement is normally suflicient to dislodge the center sealing element whereupon the liquid ingredient and the dry ingredient come into contact with each other. It sometimes happens that the center sealing element is not dislodged by the inward movement of the piston plug the first time that it is moved inwardly. Accordingly, the limiting means of the invention permit the user to easily grip the enlarged head portion of the piston plug to actuate it outwardly. The user is then free to actuate the piston plug inwardly a second time. Although the construction of the invention serves to limit the inward movement of the enlarged head portion of the piston plug it also serves to structually strenghten the ring.

It is one of the purposes of the invention to provide a construction to accomplish the purposes hereindescribed which is economical and simple to manufacture. Due to the fact that the ring of the invention is structually reinforced, the ring can be made of a thinner material than if it were not reinforced.

In each of the embodiments of the invention there is provided a construction which both limits the inward movement of the enlarged head portion of the piston plug with respect to the ring and which structurally strengthens the ring.

In one of the embodiments of the invention there is provided at least one and preferably a plurality of radially extending embossments which are embossed into the ring. These embossments serve both to limit the 3,M i-,l5l Patented Aug. 11, 1964 inward movement of the enlarged head portion with respect to the ring and structually strengthen the ring.

In another embodiment of the invention there is provided a construction which limits the inward movement of the enlarged head portion of the piston plug with respect to the ring upon the application of normal manual pressure to the enlarged head portion and which grips into the piston plug upon the application of excessive manual pressure to the enlarged head portion.

In the diagrammatic drawings:

FIGURE 1 is side elevation view, partly in crosssection and partly broken away, of a plural. compartment container employing the closure assembly of one embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation view, mainly in crosssection, showing the piston plug in its outward position;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of the ring of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURES 1 and 2 shown before it is anchored to the container;

FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of another embodiment of the ring of the invention;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of the ring of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURE 5 shown before it is anchored to the container;

FIGURE 7 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of the ring of another embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the ring illustrated in FIGURE 7 shown before it is anchored to the container;

FIGURE 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 9--9 of FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 10 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of the ring of another embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 1111 of FIGURE 10; and

FIGURE 12 is a perspective view of the ring illustrated in FIGURES l0 and 11.

Throughout the specification like reference characters are employed to designate components having the same construction, function and relative location.

Referring now to FIGURE 1 of the illustrative drawings, there is shown a plural compartment container generally indicated at 15 having an upper compartment 16 defined by an inwardly inclined portion 17 and an outwardly inclined portion 18 joined by a tubular portion 19; a lower compartment 20 is defined by an inwardly inclined portion 21 and a bottom wall 22 joined by a tubular portion 23. The outwardly inclined portion 13 and the inwardly inclined portion 21 are joined by a neck 24. The inwardly inclined portion 17 is formed integrally with a tubular neck 25. The tubular neck 25 is shown to be beaded as indicated at 26. A center sealing member 24a is normally fitted snugly internally of the neck 24 so that a liquid ingredient L in the upper compartment 16 is separated from a dry ingredient D in the lower compartment 20. The dry ingredient D could be contained in the upper compartment 16 and the liquid ingredient L could be contained in the lower compartment 20, is desired.

A piston plug 30 having a piston portion 31 and an enlarged head portion 32 joined by a thrust post portion 33 is provided to seal off the compartment 16 from the outside of the container 15. The piston portion 31 is snugly fitted in the tubular neck 25 so that when a force in the form of manual pressure is applied to the topside 29 of the enlarged head portion 32, the piston plug 30 is effective to act upon the liquid to dislodge the center sealing member 24:: out of its seating position internally of the neck 24 so that the liquid ingredient L and the a central hole 36 which: is preferably slightly larger than the thrust post portion 33, whichit receives, to provide clearance.

The ring 34 is also shown to be provided with opposed cutout portions 37 and 38 which in effect provide localized enlargements, respectively, of the central hole 36. The cutout portions 37 and 38 assist in the assembly operation in that they permit the enlarged head 32 to be squeezed through the central hole 36 of the ring 34. The topside 29 is inwardly dished as indicated at 29a and provided witha needle locating ring 291)..

In accordance with the invention, the ring 34 of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURES 1, 2, 3 and 4 is shown to be provided with a plurality of embossments 39. Although four embossments 39 are shown, a greater or lesser number are employable for the purposes herein-described, if desired. When the piston plug 30 is moved inwardly to the position shown by the phantom line PL a stop face 41 on the underside 40 of the enlarged head portion 32 is brought into abutment with the embossments 39. It is therefore apparent that because the enlarged head portion 32 remains spaced from the ring 34 by the embossments 39, the enlarged head portion 32 is easily gripped by the fingers of the user. When it is necessary for the user to actuate the piston plug 30 outwardly and then to reactuate the piston plug 30 downwardly to dislodge the center sealing element 24a, it is apparent that the outward actuation is easily accomplished by gripping the enlarged head 32 which is spaced from the ring 34. It is readily apparent that the embossments 39 also serve to structurally strengthen the ring 34. The central hole 36 and embossments 39 are formable in one stamping operation. While the embossments 39 are shown to extend in radial directions from the center of the central hole 36, they can as well extend in directions which are other than radial.

Referring now to the embodiment of FIGURES and 6 of the illustrative drawings, there is shown a ring 34a which has a flange 42 extending in an outward direction. The terminal edge 43 of the flange 42 is brought into abutment with the stop face 41 of the enlarged head portion 32 when'manual pressure is applied to the topside 29 thereof. When the stop face 41 comes into abutment with the terminal end 43 of the flange 42 upon the application of normal manual pressure exerted by the user, the enlarged head portion 32 will remain spaced from the ring 34a. In the event that the user exerts excessive manual pressure upon the topside 29 of the enlarged head portion 32, as is sometimes the case, the flange 42 being composed of a bendable material will bend into the position shown by the phantom line 45. It is apparent that in this position the terminal end 43 of the flange 42 grips into the thrust postportion 33 of the piston plug 30. Continued excessive manual pressure exerted by the user will cause flange 42 to straighten 4 out more and more, thereby causing increased gripping of the terminal end 43 of the'flange 42 into the thrust post portion 33.

If desired, slits 44, which 'are shown to extend from the central hole 36 across the flange 42 and which enable the flange 42 to be more readily bent into the position illustrated by phantom line 46 are employable.

Referring now to the embodiment of FIGURES 7, 8 and 9 of the illustrative drawings, there is shown a ring 34b which is provided with a flange 47, the marginal end 48 of which is inversely-bent. The inward movement of the piston plug 30 is limited when the stop face 41 of the enlarged head portion 32 comes into abutment with a bight portion 49 of the inversely-bent flange 47. The inversely-bent flange 47 structually strengthens the ring 34b at the place of the central hole 36 so that the ring and its associated flange 35 and the inverselybent flange 47 can be made of a relatively thin material. It is to be noted that the reinforcement of the ring is at the place of the central hole 36 where the ring 34b is the weakest. It is also apparent that in the other embodiments of the invention herein-described, the maximum reinforcement is at the place of the central hole 36.

Referring now to the embodiment of FIGURES 10, 11 and 12 of the illustrative drawings, there is shown a ring 340 having embossments 390. This embodiment of the invention is like the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the illustrative drawings with the exception that the tubular neck 250 does not contain a bead like the tubular neck 25 and the ring 340 is not provided with a flange like for example the ring 34.

The ring of the several embodiments of the invention is preferably composed of relatively thin aluminum but the invention is not intended to be limited to any particular material of construction, save that in the embodiment of FIGURES 5 and 6 the material of construction is also required to be bendable.

The above-described embodiments being exemplary only, it will be understood that modifications in form or detail can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be considered as limited save as is consonant with the scope of the following claim.

What is claimed is:

A closure assembly for a container having a tubular neck, comprising: a piston plug having a piston portion slidably fitted for inward and outward movement along said tubular neck and an enlarged head portion, the underside of said enlarged head portion providing a stop face, a ring having a central hole which receives said piston plug, and a plurality of embossments on said ring projecting outwardly from said ring and abuttable against said stop face for both limiting the inward movement of said enlarged head of said piston plug with respect to said ring and for structurally strengthening said ring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,869,745 Lockhart Jan. 20, 1959 

